The Costume Society is national membership organisation in the United Kingdom, formed in 1965 to promote the study and preservation of historic and contemporary dress.
[1] The Costume Society was formed in 1965, arising from a developing interest in the history of fashion and a desire on the part of its founders to foster serious research in an area which previously had been the domain of the amateur collector.
[5] It organises regular conferences, study days and museum visits, and administers a number of conservation awards and bursaries.
The Patterns of Fashion Award honours the work of the dress historian Janet Arnold (1932–1998), a founding member of the society.
[10] The Yarwood Research Grant is awarded annually to a student whose final project or dissertation deals with an aspect of the history of dress.